Scots face Ripon for Homecoming

October 16, 2001

Green Knights, muddy fields and evil saints have been a recurring theme in the past 35 years of Monmouth College football, and all three themes were present again in Saturday’s 31-7 loss to St. Norbert College in De Pere, Wis.

A win in the contest would have put the Fighting Scots in the driver’s seat for the Midwest Conference title, but the Knights intercepted a pass on Monmouth’s first drive of the game and cashed it in for the first of three straight TDs and a 21-0 lead. The last time Monmouth had entered a game with as much on the line was the 1987-89 MWC championship contests, all won by St. Norbert.

While the Fighting Scots’ squads of that era, particularly the 1989 team, had been used to winning, this MC squad is probably more similar to the 1968 Scots, who were starting to come into their own under coach Bill Reichow. Those Scots had one hurdle to clear before they could call themselves champions, and that was another saintly school - St. Olaf. In 1968, 1970 and 1971, Monmouth suffered its only loss of each season to St. Olaf. The Scots finally broke through in 1972, clinching an undefeated campaign with a 27-7 victory over their arch-rivals in the last game of the year.

Monmouth’s other historical link to St. Norbert is the 1998 Homecoming game, which was played in conditions that many likened to a monsoon. The resulting chaos on the field left Bobby Woll Field unplayable for the remainder of the season, and the Scots had to complete their home schedule at Monmouth High School’s Sunnylane Field.

It appears the Scots may have returned the favor Saturday, as over half the game was played in a driving rain. The Knights’ field, which was not in the best of shape before the heavy rain, took a severe beating.

“Their field’s done,” speculated MC coach Steve Bell.

Although bad weather conditions should have the same effect on both teams, the Scots got the worse of it because of the early hole they dug for themselves. To get back into the game, Monmouth needed to pass, but the wind, rain and playing surface just didn’t make that possible.

Quarterback Rob Purlee, who entered the game ranked second in the nation in passing efficiency, was just 8-of-24 for 97 yards. His rating dropped from above 200 to 172.91.

“The early deficit put us in a mode to throw the ball, but the conditions didn’t permit that,” said Bell. “It was so wet, so muddy and so slippery, we just couldn’t throw the ball outside. You just can’t afford to get down that quick against an excellent football team like St. Norbert.”

With All-American linebacker Jerimiah Janssen shutting down the run (a team-high 10 tackles, a fumble recovery and a sack) and Purlee unable to throw passes of any distance, the Scots were between a rock and a hard place. St. Norbert, meanwhile, had the luxury of throwing when they wanted to, and their unpredictability freed star running back Jason Augustynowicz for six catches for 102 yards out of the backfield, in addition to the 124 yards he gained on the ground on 22 tries.

“They did a very good job of throwing screen passes, and that’s where he got his yards,” said Bell of Augustynowicz, who had three TDs, including a 43-yard TD reception. “By getting up early on us, they were able to pass when they wanted to, not when they had to.

“From the mid-second quarter on, our defense played pretty darn good,” he added. “St. Norbert’s a better team than us at this point, but they’re not 24 points better. We can see that we’re a better team than we were last year (when MC lost by 45 to the Knights). We had to play a very good football game in order to beat them. Obviously, we didn’t do that, so we’ll learn from the experience. One game does not make a season.”

The Scots face another tough foe for Saturday’s Homecoming game, as the 4-1 Ripon Red Hawks will come to town. Bell singled out tailback Troy DeVoe and cornerback Travis LeRoy as Red Hawks to watch, and he called Ripon “a very athletic team” on both sides of the ball.

DeVoe has 498 yards this season on 113 carries and LeRoy leads the league in interceptions and kickoff returns. Quarterback Brock Bauer is the reigning MWC Offensive Player of the Week after completing 18-of-36 passes for 301 yards and three TDs in Ripon’s 44-14 victory over Grinnell. He has 1,252 passing yards this season and 15 TDs.

“It’s nice to have them at home,” Bell said Monday morning, no doubt still recalling the long six-hour trip home from Wisconsin he’d made 36 hours earlier.

Game time is 1:30 p.m. at Bobby Woll Memorial Field, and Homecoming festivities include a dedication of the field’s new sign - a gift from the Class of 2000 - at 12:30 p.m., halftime entertainment by the Monmouth College Pipe Band and the firing of the college’s historic Civil War cannon.

Football